Thin stool after having a sigmoid colectomy

I am a 36 year old female who recently had a sigmoid colectomy. It was suppose to be laparoscopic, unfortunately during surgery the surgeon decided to open me up from belly button down. Thank God I haven't had any problems with the incision, with exception of a little tenderness every once in a while. I am now 6 weeks post op. After week three my Dr. placed me on a high fiber diet, which made my bowels move 5 - 7 times a day. (which is wonderful after not being able to have a normal bowel movement prior to surgery, due to a twisted colon). My BMs were healthy "looking" as far as size and color. Within the last week I've had bad cramping which comes and goes. Now my Stool is thin and the color is slowly fading to a dull tan color. I feel the urge to go but it's usually mostly gas. Should I be concerned that there may be some type of obstruction that is causing the thin stool?

I too had a sigmoid colectomy back in 2005 and experienced the same thing as you and a thin stool is typically associated with some kind of blockage. usually in your situation it could be scar tissue that is closing off part of your colon...a CAT scan will be able to reveal where the blockage is.

There are two ways to open up a blocked colon. The first response is to place an NG tube in your nose to relieve the pressure on the bowel. What is supposed to happen here is the colon will relax causing the scar tissue to release from the bowel.

If the first repsonse does not work the only other way is surgery. Generallly laparoscipically is what they try to do...if the scar tissue is considerable they may have to open you up again.

In either case...dont wait too long before you visit with your doctor. THis can be quite painfull. I remember doubling over in pain when my colon finally closed off completely. I was lucky in the fact that an NG tube did the trick....I was really scared that more surgery was coming. Let me know what happens.

Thank you for the response. I'm scheduled to see my surgeon July 9th. I hope it's nothing major. I had an NG tube while in the hospital, it hurt more than surgery. I couldn't talk or swallow while it was in. The nurses gave me a hand held suction to use. I'm just praying I don't have to have another surgery. Thanks again for the advice, I'll keep you updated.

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